Anger over hospital build programme review

The Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust says the hospital needs £200m of maintenance

There are concerns about the future of a new hospital building project after the government officially announced it had been put "in review".

The NHS Trust that runs the Royal Berkshire Hospital (RBH) has identified problems with the site, as the backlog of maintenance costs has reached an estimated £200m.

Henry Wright, Liberal Democrat parliamentary spokesperson for the Reading Central constituency, said: “Our hard-working NHS staff and local residents deserve better."

The government said the New Hospital Programme was under review because of funding constraints.

The hospital in Reading is the biggest healthcare institution in the county, serving approximately 500,000 patients each year.

Over several years, a process has taken place to make the case for a new hospital as part of the previous Conservative government’s New Hospital Programme.

Henry Wright said local people cannot afford any more hold-ups to the programme

That project is in doubt as the new Labour government is undertaking a review of the programme, blaming the Conservatives for not funding it.

The lack of certainty over the project has been seized on by opposition political parties, who have accused the three Reading Labour candidates of making false promises.

Mr Wright said: “After so vocally supporting the new hospital for Reading at the recent General Election, it is shocking to see a Labour Health Secretary put Reading’s new hospital at risk of delay, shrinkage or cancellation."

“I am calling on our Labour MPs to keep to their election promises and save the Royal Berkshire Hospital rebuild."

During the election campaign, the then Labour candidates posed outside the Royal Berkshire Hospital

Reading's Labour MPs argued the Conservative new hospitals' programme was undeliverable.

In a joint statement, Matt Rodda (Reading Central) Yuan Yang (Earley and Woodley) and Oliva Bailey (Reading West and Mid Berkshire) said: “We will continue to fight tooth and nail for a new RBH.

“This review is only necessary because Boris Johnson’s new hospital programme was a sham.

"Within weeks of the election, it was evident that the Conservatives pledge to ‘build 40 new hospitals’ including the RBH was unfunded.

“Residents across Berkshire are rightly furious that the Conservatives promised new hospitals while covering up they had no money to pay for it."